1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an in-vivo image display apparatus which displays, on a display, an image based on a radio signal transmitted from an in-vivo image acquiring apparatus such as a capsule endoscope to be inserted into a subject, a receiving apparatus, an image display system using the in-vivo image display apparatus and the receiving apparatus, and an image display method.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a capsule endoscope equipped with an image pick-up function and a radio communication function has appeared in the field of endoscope. Such a capsule endoscope is swallowed by a subject through a mouth for the purpose of observation (examination) before the capsule endoscope is moved through the inside of organs (body cavities) such as esophagus, stomach, and small intestine according to peristalsis during an observation period until the capsule endoscope is naturally discharged from a biological body (human body) of the subject. In this manner, the capsule endoscope sequentially picks up images at a predetermined image pick-up rate by utilizing the image pick-up function.
Image data picked up by the capsule endoscope in the body cavity during the observation period during which the capsule endoscope is moved through the inside of the organs is transmitted in sequence to the outside of the subject by the radio communication function such as radio communications, and stored in a memory housed in a receiving apparatus disposed outside. If the subject carries the receiving apparatus equipped with the radio communication function and a memory function, the subject can freely move without any restriction even during the observation period after he or she swallows the capsule endoscope until he or she discharges it (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-open (JP-A) No. 2003-19111).
For the reception of the image data, the receiving apparatus is generally so configured that a plurality of antennas for receiving an image signal to be transmitted from the capsule endoscope are dispersed outside the subject, and that a single antenna having a great reception strength is selectively switched, thereby receiving the image signal. JP-A No. 2003-19111, for example, discloses a receiving apparatus, which switches the reception by the plurality of antennas arranged outside the subject, and then, searches the position of the capsule endoscope inside the subject as a transmission source of the image signal based on electric field strength received by each of the antennas.
In such a capsule endoscope system, the image data accumulated in the memory of the receiving apparatus is transferred to a work station or the like after a series of image pick-up operations by the capsule endoscope is finished, and the user, i.e., a doctor or a nurse generally observes the images afterwards.
However, there is a large quantity of images to be observed since, for example, two frames are picked up by the capsule endoscope per second. Therefore, a doctor makes a diagnosis with much labor.